This invention relates to improvements in vehicle enclosures and more particularly to an apparatus for protecting bus drivers from various abuses.
Unfortunately, in urban areas, bus drivers have been subjected to many types of abuses including robbery and assault. Bus drivers, even though their route is specified, regularly are subjected to atrocious assaults and these crimes have been on the uptrend. The plight of a bus driver and the protection necessary is relatively unique as compared to drivers of other vehicles.
The prior art is cognizant of the general problem of providing protection to drivers of various vehicles and certain prior art references show enclosures which have been employed to protect taxicab drivers in order to prevent crimes against their person.
U.S. Pat. No. 2,566,032 entitled ROBBERY PREVENTING SHIELD FOR TAXI VEHICLE BODIES issued on Aug. 18, 1951 to I. J. Poland shows a vertical screen which is mounted between the driver and the passenger. The screen is operated by a foot pedal which allows the driver to move the screen upwardly when desired.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,469,090 entitled PARTITION FOR VEHICLE BODIES issued on Sept. 23, 1969 depicts a bullet-proof partition incorporating a money transfer opening. U.S. Pat. No. 3,549,195 depicts still another type of protective device or enclosure for the driver of a taxicab; which compartment consists of a glass partition and includes electric locking means coupled to the passenger doors.
The above patents and others depict various enclosures to protect a driver of a taxicab of a conventional vehicle from assault during normal operations. In any event, the problems associated with providing protection to the driver of a bus are more severe and are not easily implemented by the references to the types of enclosures depicted in the prior art.
The operation of a bus is extremely different than the operation of a taxicab or similar vehicle. A bus driver services a continuous flow of passengers, must constantly accept change, accept transfers and provide all sorts of other information to such passengers. The driving of a bus in an urban area requires great concentration and control and requires that any enclosure provided enable the driver to maintain control of the vehicle, while permitting him to adequately serve his passengers. Based on such factors and other requirements, a protective enclosure for a bus driver poses considerable restraints in regard to the overall formulation of the apparatus.
It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a protective enclosure for a bus driver which is universal in nature and design, while enabling the driver to perform all functions required of him with a minimum of difficulty. A further aspect of the apparatus is to provide an enclosure which is capable of being rapidly installed in a vehicle and easily maintained and operated.